US Space agency Nasa has chosen three companies to provide an initial design concept for a fission surface power system that could be ready to launch to the Moon by the end of the decade.
The companies are Pennsylvania-based Westinghouse Electric Company; Maryland-based Lockheed Martin; and Texas-based X, a joint venture of Intuitive Machines and X-Energy.
The 12-month contracts are valued at $5m each and will fund the development of initial design concepts for a 40-kW class fission power system planned to last at least 10 years in the lunar environment.
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